Press Release
Published on January 21, 2025
Washington, DC – Human Rights First today called on Senators to exercise their Constitutional responsibility to oversee executive branch nominations and vote against confirming Peter Hegseth to serve as the Secretary of Defense. In his confirmation hearing, Hegseth failed to exhibit a commitment to human rights standards or the U.S. Constitution–a minimum requirement for anyone aspiring to lead the armed forces of the United States. His responses–and non-answers–to questions about military justice, domestic deployment of the military, and the fair and equal treatment of military service members demonstrated that he is not up to the vast responsibility of leading the nation’s fighting forces.
“Americans, especially those serving in uniform, deserve a defense chief that respects our military and leads with integrity and values. In his confirmation hearing, Pete Hegseth failed to demonstrate that he understands the grave responsibility of serving at the helm of the Department of Defense,” said Sue Hendrickson, President and CEO of Human Rights First. “Instead of reassuring Senators that he would follow the law, Hegseth revealed an alarming openness to ordering the military to target peaceful protestors and involve the military in the deportation of immigrants. He failed to grasp how adherence to the Geneva Conventions and the laws of war safeguards American service members and upholds the good order and integrity of the military. Instead he complained about the constraints of lawful limits on military conduct. Hegseth also failed to demonstrate the leadership qualities required to earn the trust of those serving in the armed forces. Hegseth was unpersuasive in demonstrating that his views on women’s service have evolved beyond his misguided and harmful assertions that women in combat undermine military readiness. By aligning himself as a champion of only one segment of the armed forces, Hegseth displayed a concerning disregard for the unity and diversity essential to the American fighting force he aspires to lead.”
“Pete Hegseth’s confirmation as Secretary of Defense would undermine the core values that make our military strong,” said Gretchen Klingler, Director of Veterans for American Ideals. “Our military is made up of nearly 20% women and countless LGBTQIA service members. These individuals serve honorably and would feel the weight of a DoD leader that does not respect them or the importance of their service. Hegseth’s disregard for these diverse and integral groups, along with his concerning stances on the Geneva Conventions, the use of torture, and the potential for the use of the U.S. military against the American people, poses a serious threat to the morale and values that define our armed forces, and should have disqualified him. The Senate should not confirm him, for the sake of our armed forces and the trust of the American people.”
From the Hearing:
Hegseth seemed open to using active duty military to support deportation operations against immigrants. Asked by Senator Slotkin, “Do you support the use of active duty Military in supporting detention camps?” Hegseth ultimately responded with, “President Trump is going to restore order at the border, prevent our enemies from invading. And yes, he has said mass deportations will be a part of what happens.”
Hegseth failed to reassure Senators that he would refrain from shooting peaceful protestors. “In June of 2020, then President Trump directed former Secretary of Defense, Mark Esper to shoot protesters in the legs in downtown D.C., an order Secretary Esper refused to comply with,” said Senator Hirono. She then asked, “Would you carry out such an order from President Trump?” Instead of saying, “no,” Hegseth talked about “rioters.” Hirono noted his non-answer and determined it to mean he would shoot protesters. Hegseth did not reject this conclusion.
Hegseth failed to demonstrate an understanding of the importance of the Geneva Conventions and said he was “proud” to have secured pardons for war criminals from President Trump. When asked about his support for people convicted of war crimes after having been accused by their fellow soldiers, Hegseth expressed that his priority was to make sure that “lawyers aren’t the ones getting in the way,” and complained about “restrictive rules of engagement. . .which has made it more difficult to defeat our enemies.” Hegseth said he, “defaults to the war fighter, to the men and women with dust on their boots, not the second-guessers in air-conditioned offices in Washington, DC.” He then proceeded to disparage JAG officers.
Hegseth was unpersuasive about having changed his views on women’s roles in the military. A large portion of the hearing was dedicated to Hegseth’s comments about women in the military. Hegseth regularly referred to a concern for “standards,” implying that women can only serve in combat if standards are lowered. (Concern for erosion of standards has long been used to argue against women’s roles in the military and Senator Gillibrand noted that the standards for a member of the Army infantry are exactly the same, regardless of sex or gender.)
Hegseth made a point of only speaking for a subset of service members. In response to a line of questioning from Senator Sullivan regarding President Biden’s “woke military policies” including gender-affirming care and DEI initiatives, Hegseth said that troops would “rejoice” when those policies end. Hegseth said to Sullivan, “Our military wants to focus on lethality and warfighting and get all of the woke, political prerogative, politically correct, social justice, political stuff out of the military.” Although he said he “did not disagree” with the overturn of Don’t Ask Don’t Tell, he failed to show support for LGBTQIA+ military members in a number of other ways, claiming he wanted to focus on “unity” rather than “differences”.
